Speed controlled motor-driven gate



C. R. BEALL SPEED CONTROLLED MOTOR DRIVEN GATE Oct. 12, 1948.

3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Jan. 1, 1943 INVENTOR ggzapzeyzzfimzz ATTORNEY c. R. BEALL 2,451,373

3 Shegts-Sheet 2 wm, QM SQN w pllll MU Oct. 12, 1948.

SPEED CONTROLLED MOTOR- muvmx GATE Original Filed Jam. 1, 1943 w Em Sana INVENTOR ClzarlerH .Beall BY Qif H18 ATTORNEY Oct. 12, 1948. c. R. BEALL 2,451,373

SPEED CONTROLLED MOTOR DRIVEN GATE Original Filed Jan. 1, 1943 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 IN VEN TOR ChaPZeJRBeqZZ yazzm HIS ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 12, 1948 2,451,373 SPEED CONTROLLED MOTOR-DRIVEN GATE Charles R. Beall, Edgewood, Pa., assignor to The Union Switch & Signal Company, Swissvale, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Original application January 1, 1943, Serial No. 471,069. Divided and this application November 17, 1944, Serial No. 563,943

My invention relates to speed governors, and particularly to speed governors suitable for use on highway crossing gates tolimit the raising and lowering speed of the gate arm.

In one well-known form of crossing gate shown and described in Letters Patent of the United States No. 2,295,419, granted to Samuel Mi'skelly, on September 8, 1942, the gate arm is arranged to move by gravity from its raised to its lowered position and to be returned to its raised position by an electric motor. It has recently been proposed to modify the operating mechanism for this gate so that the motor will not only be effective to raise the gate arm, but will also be effective to drive the gate arm at least part way from its raised to its lowered position to insure against the gate arm being held clear by some abnormal condition such as a high wind or the formation of ice. In normal operation it is desired to have the gate arm lower in 12 seconds which corresponds to one motor speed, and to clear in 8 seconds which corresponds to a somewhat higher motor speed.

One object of my present invention is to provide a speed governor in the form of a centrifugally operated drum type friction brake for application to the motor shaft of a gate of the type shown in said patent, which governor will frictionally limit the motor speed to the desired value while the gate arm is being lowered, but which will not exert any braking force on the motor while the gate arm is being raised unless the motor attains a speed higher than the normal clearing speed, due for example, to the gate arm having become broken oii while it is in its lowered position.

According to my invention, the governor comprises brake shoes mounted inside of a stationary brake drum on a brake shoe support which is constrained to rotate with the motor shaft but which is free to move through a limited angular distance relative to the motor shaft. The brake shoes are biased out of engagement with the brake drum by spring means, and are adapted to be moved into engagement with the brake drum in opposition to the bias of the spring means by centrifugal force. The spring means are connected with the brake shoes through a lever arrangement having a variable lever ratio which causes the biasing force to have one value when the brake shoe support occupies one angular position relative togthe motor shaft and'another value when the brake shoe support occupies its other angular position. Normally the support shifts by inertia fromone angular position to the Claims.

. ,2 other relative to the motor shaft when the direction of rotation of the motor shaft is reversed, but the parts are so arranged that if the support fails to shift its angular position for any reason such as friction when the direction of rotation of the motor shaft is reversed, when the motor speed increases to a sufficiently high value which is somewhat higher than the normal value at which the shoes engage the brake drum the shoes will then frictionally engage the drum and the resultant angular torque will cause the support to shift and thereby cause the brake to limit the motor speed to the proper speed for that direction of rotation.

Other objects and characteristic features of my invention will become apparent as the description proceeds.

The present application is a division of my copending application, Serial No. 471,069, filed on January 1, 1943 for Speed governor, now U. S. Patent No. 2,388,946, issued November 13, 1945.

- I shall describe one form of governor embodying my invention, and shall then point out the novel features thereof in claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 is a side elevational view showing a highway crossing gate operated by a motor driven mechanism the motor of which is provided with a speed governor embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged end view showing the governor embodying my invention mounted in the intended manner on the -motor of the gate operating mechanism shown in Fig. 1. Figs 3 and 4 are sectional views taken on the lines III--III and IV- -IV, respectively, of Fig. 2. Figs. 5 and 6 are views similar to Fig. 2 showing various parts of the governor in the positions they assume under different operating conditions.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts in each of the several views.

As was pointed out hereinbeiore, a governor embodying my invention is constructed primarily for application to the motor of the operating mechanism of an automatic crossing gate of the type shown in Letters Patent of the United States No. 2,295,419, and accordingly for convenience in illustrating and describing my invention 1 have shown it applied to the motor of this particular operating mechanism. It should be distinctly understood, however, that it is not limited to this particular use, but on the contrary is useful wherever it is desirable to frictionally impose one speed limit on a member when it is rotated in one direction by power means such as an electric motor and another speed limit on the member when it is rotated in the opposite direction by the power a means.

Referring now to Fig. 1, the crossing gate here illustrated comprises the usual roadway arm I mounted on the operating shaft 2 of an operating mechanism 3 of the type shown in Letters Patent of the United States No. 2,295,419 referred to above. Inasmuch as this mechanism in itself forms no part of my present invention and is described in detail in the said patent, it is believed to be sufficient for purpose of the present dis closure to point out that this mechanism includes an electric motor 4 (see Fig. 3) secured to one wall 5 of the mechanism casing, and connected through a friction clutch which I shall describe presently with a pinion 6 mounted on the shaft 1 of the motor. The pinion 6, in turn, is connected through a suitable gear train with the gate arm operating shaft 2, whereby rotation of the motor will raise or lower the gate arm depending upon the direction of rotation. The mechanism also includes an electromagnet (not shown) which be: comes energized when the gate arm is moved to its raised position and which, when energized, is effective to prevent rotation of the gate armin the direction to cause it to lower. The gate arm is biased by gravity to move to its lowered position when the electromagnet becomes deenergized; and is connected with counterweights 8 for adjusting the lowering torque to the desired value. Heretofore, the motor has pnly beenenergized when it is desired to raise the gate arm, and gravity has been relied upon entirely to effect the lowering of the gate arm. However, when the motor is provided with the governor embodying my present invention, it is contemplated that the motor will also be energized during at least the first part of the stroke of the gate arm from its raised to its lowered position to insure that the gate arm will not be retained in its clear position at any time due to some abnormal condition such as a high wind or a formation of ice which tends to hold the gate arm in its clear position. The mechanism further includes suitable circuit controlling contacts for controlling the energization of the motor to obtain the desired operation of the gate.

Referring now to Figs. 2, 3 and 4, ashere illus-. trated, the governor embodying my invention is applied to the electric motor 4, and in order to save space and materials it is combined with the previously referred to friction clutch which is provided to protectthe mechanism gearing from excessive strains such as might occur in the event that the mechanism is brought to a sudden stop due for example to the movement of the gate arm being interfered with by a vehicle. a The fric tion clutch is mounted on'the right-hand'en'd of the motor shaft 1, as viewed in Fig. 3, and in the form here shown comprises a friction disc Ill disposed between a'drivingmember II and a driven member [2. The driven member I2 is formed integrally with thepinion 6, and the hubs of these two parts are provided with self-lubricating bushings I3 which rotatably receive the motor shaft. The driving member II is splined on shaft 7, andis biased to the longitudinal position on the shaft in'which the two members and the friction disc are frictionally held together by means of a metrically oposite projections I6 which cooperate with rounded diametrically opposite recesses I1 v 23 engages the drivinglug-Zias' shown in Fig. 2,, V the pin 42 will then project into thepath of move- 'ment of the lever in such manner that the lever formed on the inner face of a nut I8 screwed onto the outer end of the motor shaft. It will be apparent that the force required to slip the clutch will depend upon the amount of compression of the spring I4, and that the compression of this spring can be readily varied by adjusting nut I8. It will also be apparent that the cooperation between the recesses in the nut I8 and the projections I6 on the spring washer I5 makes the nut self-locking in positions half a turn apart, thereby enabling the desired adjustment to be readily obtained.

According to my invention, the governor comprises a brake shoe carrier 2| mountedwith some clearance on a tubular projection 2|] provided on the driving member II at the side opposite to the friction disc Ill. The brake shoe carrier 2| is held in place on the projection 20 by means of a snap ring 22, and is constrained to rotate with the driving member by means of a driving pin 23 (see Figs-2 and 4). 'The drivin pin 23 issecured to. a laterally projecting lug 24 formed'on the driving member and projects between and cooperates with two driving ribs '25 and 26 formed on the rear side, as viewed in Fig. 2, of an arm 2'! provided on the brake shoe'carrier; Thedriving ribs 25 and 26 are angularly spaced apart a sufficient' distance to permit a limited amount of angular movement between the. driving member and the brake shoe carrier for a purpose which will be made clear presently. The brake s hoe carrier is provided in addition to the arm 21' with a second diametrically opposite arm v28.

Governor elements in the form of brake shoes 29 and 30 are pivotally attached to the'arms 21 and 28 by means of pivot pins 3| and 32, and are provided with brakelinings 29a and 30a which' cooperate with a brake drum 33. .The brake shoes are also provided with stop'pads 29b and 30b 7 which cooperate withthe outer surface ofv the brake shoe carrier 2| to limit the movement of the brake shoes away from the brake drum, and the shoes are constantly biased to the positions in which the stop padsengage the brake shoe carrier by means of biasing springs 34 and 35. The spring 34 is secured at one end to the pivot pinj32 and is operatively connected at the other end with one end of a lever 36. .The lever is pivotally secured intermediate its ends tothe brake shoe 29 at'the end opposite to the pivot pin 3| :by means ofxa' bolt 31, and cooperatesbetween the bolt'3'I1and the point at which thespring 34 is .attachedto the lever with a. stop pin :38 which-limits the angular rotation of the lever.31 due to the force applied thereto by the biasing spring..- ,The free end of the lever 36 is formed with abe'veled surface 36a and cooperates witha, lockout pin 42 secured to a laterally projecting arm'43 provided on the driving member I-I The parts are so proportioned that when the brake shoe carrierzl occupiesthe angular position relative to the driving member I I in which the driving pin 23 engages thedriving lug 26, as shown in Fig; 5, the pin 42 willbeout T of the path of movement of the lever 36in-rebraking position but that when the brake shoe carrier occupies the angular position relative to the driving member II in which the driving pin will become a lever of the third class with the pin 42 acting as the fulcrum; It will be obvious that when the lever is functionin gas a lever of the third class the force necessary to move the brake.

shoe 29 to its braking position will be materially increased.

The spring 35 is similarly secured at one end to the pivot in 3| and is operatively connected at the other end to one end of a lever 39. The lever 39 is pivotally secured intermediate its ends to the brake shoe 3!! at the end opposite to the pivot pin 32 by means of a bolt 40, and cooperates between the bolt 40 and the point at which the spring 35 is attached to the lever with a stop pin 41 which limits the angular rotation of the lever 39 due to the force applied thereto by the biasing spring. The free end of the lever 39 is formed with a beveled surface 39a, and cooperates with a lookout pin 44 secured to a laterally projecting arm 45 provided on the driving member I I. The manner in which the lookout pin cooperates with the lever 44 is identical with that in which the lockout pin 42 cooperates with the lever 36, and will be obvious from the drawing without further description.

The brake drum 33 is formed integrally with a bracket 46 which is secured by means of four bolts 47 to the one end bell of the motor 4. The bracket is maintained in concentric relation to the motor shaft 1 by means of an arcuate rib 48 which fits into an arcuate groove 49 machined into the motor end bell, and is maintained in the desired angular position relative to the mechanism casing by a tongue 49a, (Fig. 2) which fits into a vertical slot 50 formed in the wall 5 of the casing directly below the opening for the motor shaft. The rear wall of the brake drum is formed with an opening 33a which receives the driven member I2 of the friction clutch with some clearance.

As shown in Figs. 2, 3, and l, the various parts of the governor occupy the positions they occupy when the gate arm I is in its raised position and the motor 4 is deenergized. That is to say, the brake carrier 2! is rotated to the relative position with respect to the driving member II in which the driving pin 23 engages the driving rib 25, so that the lockout pins 42 and 44 are disposed in the path of movement of the associated levers 36 and 39, and the brake shoes are held in their released or non-braking positions by the biasing springs 34 and 35.

In explaining the operation of the governor as a whole I shall assume that with the parts in the positions shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4, the motor 4 becomes energized to lower the gate arm. The energization of the motor will cause the motor shaft to rotate in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 2, and this rotation of the m0- tor shaft will of course cause the driving member I I to be rotated in the same direction. When the driving member starts to rotate, the inertia of the brake carrier and brake shoes will tend to hold these parts stationary, and as a result, the driving members II will normally initially rotate relative to the brake carrier from the position in which the driving pin 23 engages the driving rib 25 as shown in Fig. 2 to the position in which the driving pin 23 engages the driving rib 26, as shown in Fig. 5. This initial rotation will move the lockout pins 42 and 44 out of the path of movement of the levers 36 and 39 but will have no other immediate effect on the governor. As soon as this initial rotation is completed, the brake shoe carrier will be constrained to rotate with the driving member, and the parts are so proportioned that as the motor speed increases, the brake shoes will function in a manner similar to the usual governor weights and will move outwardly in response to cen- 6 trifugal force from their non-braking to their braking positions at some speed below the speed at which the motor normally operates to cause the gate arm to lower in the desired time interval. When the brake shoes move to their braking positions, the brake linings will frictionally engage the brake drums, and will thus exert a braking force which is proportional to the square of the motor speed. The parts are further so proportioned that this braking force will limit the lowering speed to the desired value even un der adverse operating conditions such as the presence of a heavy ice load on the gate arm. It should be noted that during the movement of the brake shoes to their braking positions under these conditions the levers 36 and 39 will remain in the relative positions with respect to' the brake shoes in which theyengage the associated stop pins 38 and 4|, and the only efiect of the lovers is to provide a fixed connection between the biasing springs and the brake shoes.

I shall now assume that the gate arm is in its lowered position and that the motor is energized to raise the gate arm. Under these conditions the parts of the governor will initially occupy the positions in which they are shown in Fig. 5, and the motor shaft will rotate in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 2. As soon as the motor shaft starts to rotate, the inertia of the brake carrier and associated parts will normally cause the driving member to move relative to the brake carrier from the position shown in Fig. 5 to the position shown in Fig. 2. This relative rotation, in turn, will move the lookout r pins 43 and 44 into the path of movement of the associated levers 36 and 39, and as a result any movement of the brake shoes toward their brakin positions will cause these levers to act as third class levers with the lookout pins serving as fulcrums. When the levers act as third class levers, the biasing force exerted by the springs on the brake shoes is considerably greater than is the case when the lookout pins are out of the path of movement of'the levers, and the parts are so proportioned that the centrifugal force exerted on the brake shoes under these conditions will not be sufficient to move the brake shoes to their braking positions at the normal raising or clearing speed. If, however, the motor speed increases above the normal clearing speed for any reason when the gate arm is being raised, as might happen due to the unbalanced torque of the counterweights 8 in the event the gate arm becomes broken ofi while the gate arm is in its lowered position, the increased motor speed will then cause the brake shoes to move to their braking positions as shown in Fig. 6, and thereby limit the motor speed to a speed slightly higher than the normal clearing speed.

It should be particularly pointed out that if the inertia of the brake shoe carrier and associated parts does not cause the driving member to move relative to the brake shoe carrier from the position shown in Fig. 2 to the position shown in Fig. 5 when the gate arm starts to lower, the brake shoes will be locked out of engagement with the brake drum at speeds up to the normal clearing speed. However, under these conditions, the unbalanced load of the gate arm will soon cause the motor speed to increase above the normal clearing speed, and when this happens, the centrifugal force acting on the brake shoes will be sufficient to cause the levers 36 and 39 to rotate about the lookout pins as fulcrums a sufficient amount to permit engagement of the brake linings. with the brake drums As soon as the brake shoes engage the brake drums, the resulting .frictional drag will cause relative rotation of the driving member and brake shoe carrier. to the position shown in Fig. 5. This relative rotation of. the driving member and brake shoe carrier will move the lookout pins out of engagement with the levers, and will thus decrease the biasing force exerted by thebiasing springs to the normal. value, whereupon the governor will then act to retard the lowering speed of the gate arm to its normal value.

If the inertia of the brake shoe carrier and associated parts fails 'to .move, the lookout pins into the path of movement of the levers when the motor is operated to raise the gate arms, the shoes will move into engagement with the brake drum at some speed below the normal clearing speed, and the friction between the shoes and the drum when the shoes first engage the drum will cause relative rotation of the driving memher and brake shoe carrier which rotation will bring lockout pins 42 and 44 into engagement with the beveled surfaces 36a and 39a of levers 36 and 39, and will thus change these levers to levers of the third class. The force of the springs acting in opposition to centrifugal force will therefore be increased thus reducing the braking action to such an extent that the speed of operation is only slightly reduced.

Although I have herein shown andv described only one form of governor embodying my invention, it is understood that various changes and modifications may be made therein within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

I-Iaving thus described my invention, what I claim is: Q

1. In a highway crossing gate comprising a gate arm movable by motor means between raised and lowered positions, the combination of a governor of the friction brake type connected with the gate arm and including means effective to apply a brake to the motor at one speed when the gate is being lowered and at another speed when the gate is being raised.

' *2; In a highwaycrosslng gate comprising a gate arm movable by motor means between raised and .loweredpositions, the combination of a gov ernor of-the' friction brake type connected with the gate arm and including means effective to apply a brake to the motor at one'speed when the gate is beinglowered and at another speed when the gateiis being raised, said other speed being higher than the normal raising speed.

3. In a .highwaycrossing gate comprising a gate arm movable by motor means between raised and-loweredpositions, the combination of a governor of the friction brake type connected with the gate arm and including means efiective to apply-a brake .to the motor at one speed when the gate is being lowered and at another speed when the gate is being raised, said one speed being the normalloweringwspeed and said otherspeed being higher than the normal raising speed.

4. ,The combination with a highway crossing gate which is. power operated in twodirections,

of a governor of the "friction brake type connected with the gate arm-and including inertia lowering speed of the gate arm, said governor including inertia operated means for varying the gate speed at which said brake becomes applied. 7 CHARLES R. BEALL.

REFERENCE S CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

V UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Date Name 1,888,058 7 Vincent Nov. 15, 1932 2,310,694 ,Henry Feb. 9, 1943 2,310,716 Stephenson Feb. 9, 1943 2,372,579 Jefferson et a1 Mar. 27, 1945 

